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Sunday, May 14, 2017

This Saturday at the learning center I was volunteering at was Mom's Day. The high school kids are reciting what they have been working on all summer, write at least 3 superpowers of your mom. It would've been a pretty easy list if I was still in high school. You've got your "my mom cooks the best food," you have "my mom takes real good care of me," "she brought me into the world."

But now, at 33, as my relationship with my mother has grown. We've been through our ups and downs, but now it has bloomed. And in it's bloom, I find it harder to make a list now. All the things that I thought, back in high school, all my mom does, every one else does too. Like a flower in bloom, it's beautiful on its own, but what makes it stand out from a farm of flowers?

So, what I have been working on for a week now, are at least three things unique to my mother. Something only she can only do. Things that I find beautiful, and ultimately what makes her my mom.

She has a special call for us. *Spoiler alert* it's a long *psssssssssst*. Anywhere. I even heard a story back then that it had different lengths: Longest psst is for me, a bit shorter than that is for my sister, a bit more shorter is for my other sister, and so on. It was crazy. It's like when a mommy bird calls out her chicks to come back home from playing in the yard. One time, we were meeting at Galle, I heard a long *psssssssttt* and quickly realized my mom is finally there. I don't know if other mothers have this, but I haven't met one who does.

One of the things I don't like about her, is her tendency to gossip. I hate gossiping in general, and I hate that my mom does that. But, again, as I get to know my mom, it has become clear to me why this is so: people just hand her the information. She has that charm, that charisma that would make you want to tell her things. So, it's not her fault she knows a lot of gossip, the things she knows was given to her for free.

When my sister graduated elementary school, my dad got her a radio. This was back in the mid 90s when every teenager listened to the radio all day, waiting for their favorite song to be played, and record it on a cassette tape. I held back tears when I saw that happening in front of me. The year I graduated, all I got was a fucking magnetic chess set that I had to ask for. Seeing my sister rip through the gift wrapper from the box told me that this was an actual present from my dad, and not a request. My 13-year old self thought this was not fair. I held back tears as I watched a Ginebra/Shell game on TV. A few minutes later, I succumbed to my bed and cried like shit. I suppose my mom has some sort of esp or spidey sense or something, because here's super mom to the rescue. Consoling me and telling me everything I needed to hear in that moment. I felt better. Slept well. After a week, she got me my own radio/cassette player.

A few other things:

She practically started my passion for singing. When I was in third grade, she got herself a Barry Manilow collection of tapes. We listened to it everyday. Barry Manilow got me singing, but my mom pointed me in thay direction.

My mom makes the best leche flan. All other leche flans are shit

She supprted my aversion for vegetables when I was young. If our ulam that night had gulay in it, she'd make sure I had my own porkchop for dinner.

She once threw a bunch of coins at me. But I think it was because she was growing jealous of our grandmother, her nanay. (Haha)

She went through a lot of adversity in her late 20s to early 30s. But the way she turned her life around is truly one of the most inspiring things I have ever witnessed in my life. It's probably one of the reasons I try to make myself a better person. (this should probably part of the list above, but I didn't want to go into detail)

She has a way of bringing her kids together. It doesn't always work, but when it does, I can see absolute happiness in her eyes.

When my dad retired, she had the sense of responsibility to step up and earn the upkeep for our home. She now has a job she really loves, and one of the reasons is she's able to showcase her 2nd superpower.

And really, there's probably a lot more she does that I don't notice. Which is the point of this post afterall. When you love somebody, you catch a lot of things that make them special. And when this person loves you back, loves you unconditionally, I feel like one of the things you are obligated to do to reciprocate this is to observe, notice, and appreciate these things that they do to express their love.

So to my mommy, I want you to know that this is how I express my affection. And I want to tell the world that I have the greatest mother in history, even if it's only my history. Happy mothers day.

P. S. My family doesn't really particularly care for these "holidays" but I felt like doing something for my mom.

P. P. S. I also want to greet the mother of my child and her mother on this occassion. I hope you bring the same inspiration (you probably will) to my son just like how my mother inspired me. Thank you for all the hardwork and sacrifice you have to endure in helping raise my son. I say this from the bottom of my heart.